The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-07-27
SHE MARRIED A COUNT"
Discovered in an Insane Asylum
Peculiar Duties of q Foreign Consul.

SHE MARRIED A COUNT"
Discovered in an Insane Asylum
Peculiar Duties of q Foreign Consul
Washington Special to Detroit Tribune.
''No one who has not had practical ex-
perience has any idea of the various duties
which a Consul representing his country
abroad is required to perform, " said Dr. st.
Clair, the able Chief of the Consular Bureau
of the State Department your correspond
ent yesterday Not only have they to look
after the commercial interests of their coun-
try, but they have to attend TO some of the
queerest kinds of requests from their coun-
trymen at home. 1t has more than once
been the case that a Consul has been APP
piled to purchase peculiar animals found in
the country to which they are accredited,
all the way from elephants to rare kinds of
lizards.
Very frequently they are asked to collect
number of specimens of the Sea-shells
peculiar to their part of the world. Only n
short time ago we received request from
gentleman in Kentucky asking that the
Consul at Barcelona, i'll Spain, procure for
him fine specimen of the native ass for
breeding purposes, the gentleman being
under the impression that that animal at
tanned to large size in Spain. The request
was forwarded, and the Kentuckian has
since received a very fine animal of the
donkey kind.
But the more frequent requests outside of
the purely commercial duties of the Consul
are of purely private and family kind. If
a son, daughter, husband or wife goes as
tray, or if information is required OF the
whereabouts of a person of any degree OF
relationship to the inquirer in foreign
country, application is at once made to the
representatives of this country nearest the
place where the missing person is supposed
to be, and the Consul is asked to look HIM
up. Some very startling rOmanceS have
been unearthed i'll this way through the con-
sular agencies. That was a strange case
which was unearthed some time ago i'll
Florence, Italy, by Mr. A. Schuyler Crosby,
who was then United States Consul at that
place. One day he was conducting party
of Americans through the principal places
of interest in the city, and among the places
visited was the insane Asylum. AS the
party was going through the wards one of
the inmates OF the institution suddenly called
out to Mr. Crosby:
ooh, sir: YOU are an American, are you
not? For Gods sake come here and listen
to my story" Mr.. Crosby went to the cell
from whence the piteOus appeal came, and
saw behind the bar woman much emacia-
ted, but apparently sane. He listened to
her story, and, after making inquiries, set
himself to work to procure her release, III
which be succeeded after great deal of
trouble.
The woman's story was as follows: She
was born in Mobile, of wealthy parents,
and, being attractive in appearance, she had
a number of suitors for her land III mar
riege One day an Italian came to the city,
he was handsome, and wrote the prefix
Count before his name. He soon got him
self introduced into the best circles of Mo
bile society and. by his pleasant and courte
GUS bearing, became great favorlte among
the ladies of the place. He became a con-
slant visitor at the house of Miss ---, the
subject of this story, and intimacy began to
ripen into love on the part of the young
girl The parents did not approve of the
match, but the handsome Italian portrayed
to the love-smitten girl in glowing terms the
wealth of his affection for her and the beau
ties of the lovely Florentine nome which he
wished her to become tho mistress Of At
last his entreatieS were successful, and the
Young girl was married to the Count
secretly. When the girls parents heard of
it thew were enraged. Her father refused
to have anything to do with her, and in
stead OF giving her the fortune he had in
tended to be hers settled on her the sum of
S., 900 wear. The young couple started for
Europe, but it soon became apparent to the
wife that her husband was not only not in
love with her, but that his only object in
marrying her was to procure her fortune,
and having failed i'll that through the
anger of her father, had no more use for
her.
Shortly after reaching Florence the
Count had three physicians called in and
thev made an examination Of the young
girl, much to her surprise and terror. On
the following day a covered wagon came to
the door and she was told to get inside.
When she refused she was seized from be-
hind and rudely bound and bandaged. She
tainted, and when she recovered she found
herself in the insane asylum. There she
remained for over two years, until she was
found by Mr.. Crosby Meanwhile the hus-
band. who had caused her incarceration,
wrote home to the girls parents that she
was very sick and described the expense he
was putting himself TO in order to take prop
er care of the girl he loved SO well. The
father was too proud to allow him to bear
the full expense of his daughters illness
under the circumstances, and sent along
regular rornittances. The Count paid $500
TO the asylum for the keep of his wife, and
lived in good style upon the remaining
81 800 As soon as the news reached No
bile of the true state OF affairs, however, the
remittances suddenly stopped, and the young
girl was received home with open arms.
The Count" is still living III Florence. but
has to resort to other means of earning a
Iuipor